The present invention relates to a pneumatic bridge element.
Various pneumatic bridge elements have been disclosed. These usually comprise tubular inflatable hollow bodies having an outer skin made of reinforced plastic films. Special measures are required to absorb the tensile and compressive forces which occur and to prevent buckling of the structural or bridge elements. In principle, the compressive forces are absorbed by one or more compression bars, which are either integrated in the tubular component or are built onto the outside of it. The tensile forces are absorbed by reinforcements applied to the outside or integrated into the plastic film or by special ties. Examples of such structural or bridge elements are disclosed in PCT/CH01/00107, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,894,307, 4,712,335, and 5,421,128.
What all these structural or bridge elements have in common is the fact that the building of an actual bridge or a component related to it in terms of function requires a number of such tubular elements to be built onto one another laterally, and the fact that the outlay for building and using them can become considerable.